Seven Dale Football players overall make official college decisions

CHESTER - Head football coach Kevin Tucker watched six of seven Knights make official their decisions to pursue football on the collegiate level, with the seventh signing as a postgraduate.

It was the most for Thomas Dale Football since 2011.

"It's nice to see these guys get the chance to continue their football careers and education and goals at the next level," Tucker said. "Having seven guys sign today, including Max Oxendine...it's something we're very proud of. We've got another seven or eight that are gonna sign in April. That's 14 kids, out of a senior class of 20, that you've gotta be proud of. Those other six guys, we're working on trying to get them into trade schools, military options - at the end of the day, if we go 20-for-20, I'm excited."

Six signed at Thomas Dale. Elijah Burns is going to William and Mary (NCAA DI FCS, Colonial Athletic Association, 2-9 in 2017), Talvis Robinson to NAVY (DI FBS, American Athletic Conference, 7-6), Devonte Chandler to Elon College (DI FCS, CAA, 8-4), Gynai James to Lackawanna College (NJCAA, 7-2), Jamarkus "Snug" Wilson to Newport News Apprentice School (USCAA, 2-8) and Zach Jacobs to Averett University (DIII, USA South Athletic Conference, 6-4).

"What I tell the kids when they're picking their schools: you've gotta pick the school that [fits] you socially, academically and then football," Tucker said. "I've had some kids that have had some scholarship opportunities...[Chandler] had some Division I scholarship opportunities and said that he went to Elon [because] he felt like he was at home. I was proud of that, of the fact that he was able to say 'I don't have to be a Division I player, I can be a IAA guy and be happy at my school of choice.'

"Then you've got Jarmarkus Wilson, the heart and soul of our team, signing with The Apprentice School," Tucker said, "because he said, 'Coach, in 30 years [I want to] retire and have a great 401k.' For an 18 year old to be able to say that, for him to have that kind of attitude going into college is something that I'm very proud of."

All six have been part of not just a 2017 season in which Thomas Dale went 9-3, but a four-year stretch in which the Knights have achieved four consecutive nine-win campaigns.

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